Sliced Bread, Move Over: Contest for Next Best Thing

Sliced breadA contest commemorating the 80th anniversary of sliced bread is currently underway. The best thing since sliced bread contest is being monitored by Times Online and News.com.au. Inventions will be voted on this week after which a decision as to the best invention since sliced bread will be made will be made.

Where did the expression, the best thing since sliced bread come from anyway?

The phrase and all its variations means praising an invention or development. It first became popular in a small American town back in the 1930s, and derived from the fact that Wonder Bread, the first mass marketer of sliced bread, boasted its innovation and uniqueness. Although it is an expression that is commonly used as frequently in Great Britain as it is in the United States, it is considered “the ultimate depiction of innovative achievement and American know-how.”

What are some of the innovations vying for the title of the best thing since sliced bread?

Many readers from News.com.au have put in their two cents about what they consider to be the best thing since sliced bread in a contest. Some of these ideas include: the Internet, latex gloves, penicillin and the microchip. In Australia, another formidable competitor is canned beer also referred to collectively as “tinnies.”

What are some of the rules about the best thing since sliced bread contest?

Actually, there is only one guideline to consider if you want to enter the best thing since sliced bread contest. Since sliced bread is eighty years old, all nominations must have been invented in the 80 years since. Times Online promises to keep all interested parties informed and will submit all entries to a poll, announcing the winner at the end of the week. Friendly rivalry between Britain and Australia is strongly suspected and will be condoned.

Keep your eyes peeled and your butter knife ready.

Soon there will be a new kind of sliced bread in town.